Fortune praised Epstein for the team's turnaround calling him the "wunderkind executive" who wisely modeled the Cubs after the Boston Red Sox.

Epstein, however, is not buying it. Esptein had a fantastic reaction to the title, scoffing at it to ESPN's Buster Olney.

"Um, I can't even get my dog to stop peeing in the house. That is ridiculous. The whole thing is patently ridiculous. It's baseball--a pastime involving a lot of chance. If Zobrist's ball is three inches farther off the line, I'm on the hot seat for a failed five-year plan. And I'm not even the best leader in our organization; our players are."

Of course, Epstein has been central in the Cubs' turnaround. He's placed an emphasis on character and strategy, creating a culture that tops many franchises, to say nothing of the team's solid drafting and free-agency work.

Regardless of his success in dog training, Epstein has done a good job with, as Fortune puts it, baseball's most "lovable losers."